Be safe this St Patrick’s Day

posted on 15 Mar 2017

An Garda Síochana reported this week that since the beginning of the year, over 1,600 people have been arrested on suspicion of drink driving. However you decide to celebrate St Patrick's Day, enjoy yourself but be safe. Here are three things to keep in mind if you plan to drink alcohol over the long weekend.

KEEP TRACK

Our new research found that 1 in 2 people believe that drinking to excess is no big deal. Excessive or binge drinking - six or more standard drinks in one sitting - greatly increases the health risks already associated with alcohol. A good habit to get into is to keep track of how many standard drinks you consume. One standard drink is a half pint of beer, stout or lager, small glass of wine (100ml) or a pub measure of spirits (35.5ml).

Get to know the HSE low-risk guidelines for alcohol consumption and remember, they are guidelines - not a target:

11 standard drinks (110g pure alcohol) spread out over the week for women, with at least two alcohol-free days

17 standard drinks (170g pure alcohol) spread out over the week for men, with at least two alcohol-free days

Never EVER drink and drive

You can help to make sure this St Patrick's Day weekend is a safe one by choosing not to drink and drive or get into a car with someone who has been drinking. According to the Road Safety Authority, March accounts for 11% of alcohol-related collisions. It's simple - any amount of alcohol will affect your ability to drive.

Be mindful that the time of your last drink at night will affect when it is safe for you to drive the following day. It takes your body one hour to process one standard drink and there’s no quick fix. Nothing can help to remove alcohol from your body, only time. So why take the risk? Plan ahead and arrange an alternative way to travel.

Drink less, feel better

1 in 3 people would like to drink less alcohol, according to our latest research. Small changes to your drinking habits can make a big difference to your health and wellbeing now and in the future. Here are some quick tips you can try:

If you usually drink pints of beer or cider, why not opt for a bottle or half pint instead?

When you’re drinking wine, always finish one glass before pouring another. Topping up your glass can make it hard to track how much you are drinking.

Alcohol dehydrates the body. Alternating each drink with water will keep you hydrated.

Stay out of rounds. In these situations you may drink at the pace of the fastest person and could end up drinking much more than intended.